Pyrophoric element feeding mechanism for lighters



A. CAMPOS June 2l, 1949.

PYROPHORIC ELEMENT FEEDING MECHANISM FOR LIGHTERS Filed' June 21, 194e v FIG. 1.

INV EN TOR. Amm-l cnvos, ZZ

A TTORA/EYS Patented June 21, 1949 unir-En STATES,

2,473,636., PYEOEHOEIC ELEMENT EEED'IINQ Adolph Campos, Newark, N. J. envliaiir Jveelf 1946: SerelNe ifiil 1 Claim. (Cl. 67.-7 ..1)

of pesltivelxi adi/'arming 't iai/.ewipe is te. prende meheeism 1e @rele pyroplnoriJ element to- "A st'l further objeot of the present invention 5 is to prvide a feed rneohani's'mfor a I Jyror'nlooriey element'in a lighterv whih isextremely eizcient iiectiefi end'siifiilim Sirlwwre.

'. Other objedtsndadvantages Will beoome ap;

Parierifrom the in set'infuswbrbken awayfshowing the pyrophorioV el'ment feeding mechanism of the present invention.

Figure 2 is `sectional View taken on the line 2-'2 bf Figure 1. m

Figure 3 is an enlarged exploded View of the pyrophoric, element, follower, and rotatable resilient congolute member.

Referring to the drawings,A the numeral [il designates `the receptacle containing fuel'and having a Wieke l l, suitablgmgunted therein, said Wick having an end prbjeoting through the top wall I2 of said receptale. Rotatably Inminted` en a shaft.l |43 .carried by' the side walls. Qfthe receptacle is an abredantgsureeeii Wheel 14,- A1- iiane'e inwoner-@tire @lation with the wheel I4 is a pyrophoric element l5.

Interposed Within the receptacle Il] and supported between the top Wall l2 and the bottom wall I6 of said receptacle is an upstanding hol- 10W housing or tube-shaped member l1. The

ele/ailier@ View" with parte,

With a boss d bo'ss` hav? rally, eee,-

screw driver in the kerf 22 and rotating the screw driver in the proper direction, and may be mounted in engaging position by inserting the bolt 2| in the complemental openings in the side wall 20 and the bottom wall I6 of the receptacle I and rotating the screw driver in the opposite direction.

The bottom wall I6 of the receptacle I0 is provided with an opening 33 for the insertion of the pyrophoric element I5, the follower 3|, and resilient convolute member 26 therethrough, said opening 33 having a notched portion 34 forming a seat for the head 21 of the convolute member. Likewise, the convolute member 26 and follower 3| may be withdrawn through the opening 33 when substitution of a new pyrophoric element I is desired. When the pyrophoric I5, follower 3|, and resilient convolute member 26 are initially positioned within the tube-shaped member I1 and locked in position through the medium of the end of the headless-threaded bolt 2| being advanced to the point such as to be received within the space dened by the pair of spaced collars 24 and 25, the convolutions of the resilient convolute element or spiral spring 30 are placed under a slight tension.

With reference to the follower 3|, it is to be noted that the transversely disposed pin 32 engages the inclined shoulder 31, Figure 1, contiguous to the groove I9 in the boss I8 when the follower has been advanced to its upper limit of travel through the tube-shaped member I1, such shoulder acting as a stop for the pin 32. When the pin 32 is in abutting engagement with the shoulder 31, the upper edge of the follower 3| will be just flush with the upper edge of the top wall I2, thereby preventing contact of the follower with the abradant surface of the wheel I4.

In operation of the mechanism with the parts as shown in Figure 1, the operator inserts his nger nail in the kerf 28 of the head 21, and rotates the head in the direction to cause advancement of the pyrophoric element I5 relative to the peripheral surface of the abradant-surfaced wheel I4. The rotation of the head 21 causes the shank 29 to impart rotative movement to the spring 30, and travel of the follower 3| along a longitudinal linear path through the intermediary of the projecting pin 32 moving upwardly between the convolutions of the coil spring 30 in engagement with the groove I9, re-

sulting in the pyrophoric element I5 carried bythe following 3| to travel upwardly through the tube-shaped member I1. As the pin 32 moves upwardly through the spaces intermediate the convolutions of the spring 30, the convolutions underneath the pin 32 are placed under tension, which tension acts to give a positive effective upward movement of the pyrophoric element I5 and maintain the upper edge of the pyrophoric element in engaging contact with the abradant surfaced wheel I4. This periodic rotation of the head 21 is continued until all the pyrophoric element I5 has been used up. This is apparent when the top of the follower 3| is just flush with the upper surface of the top wall I2 of the receptacle I0.

When substitution of a new pyrophoric element I5 is necessary, the operator inserts a Screw driver in the kerf 22 of the headless bolt 2| and turns same in the proper direction to cause 4 withdrawal of such bolt. With the bolt 2| withdrawn, the operator withdraws the resilient convolute member 26 and the follower 3| from the tube-shaped member I1. The operator then positions the follower 3| upon the shank 29 of the convolute member 26 so that the pin 32 extends transversely through a space between a pair of the convolutions of the spiral spring 30 with the longer projecting end arranged on the side corresponding to the groove I9 of the tubeshaped member I1, whereupon a new pyrophoric element I5 is inserted through the top of the spiral spring 30 and allowed to drop until the lower end thereof rests upon the upper edge of the follower 3|. With the follower 3|, and pyrophoric element I5 thus assembled upon the convolute member 26, the operator inserts same in the tube-shaped member I1 through the opening 33, and while holding same in assembled position, re-inserts the threaded bolt 2| until the projecting end 23 engages the space intermediate the collars 24 and 25.

I claim:

In a lighter including a fuel-containing receptacle, the combination with a rotatable abradant surfaced wheel and a pyrophoric element, of a mechanism for feeding said element relative to said wheel, said mechanism including a hollow, cylindrical tube, there being a longitudinally-extending groove along the inner face of said tube, a pyrophoric feeding means arranged within said tube and mounted for rotative movement, said means including a head, a shank projecting from the inner face of said head, and a spring having a plurality of convolutions therealong carried by said shank, a follower supporting said pyrophoric element arranged concentrically within the convolutions of said spring and resting upon said shank, said follower having a transversely-projecting means embodying a pin in co-acting engagement with the space intermediate a pair of said convolutions and having an end thereof extending into said groove, means on said head for applying rotative movement thereto to thereby impart rotative movement to the spring and travel of the follower along a longitudinal, linear path through said tube, means embodying a shoulder on said groove, coacting with said transversely-projecting pin for limiting the travel of said follower, and means embodying a bolt carried by said receptacle and inter-engaging said tube and said head for holding the tube and pyrophoric feeding means in assembled relation within said receptacle.

ADOLPH CAMPOS.

REFERENCES CITED The following referenlces are of record in the le of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,052,783 Wolf Feb. 11, 1913 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 96,858 Austria May 10, 1924 121,388 Austria Feb. 25, 1931 646,047 Germany June 7, 1937 

